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Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Greek Pork Chops with Zucchini and Feta (#thebookclubcookbookCC)

We are already in our 4th month of The Book Club Cook Book Cooking Crew! The premise of this cooking crew is that each month a different blogger will host a different month and choose a book where other bloggers will participate by making and creating dishes inspired by the book.

This month is being hosted by Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm, who chose "Three Junes" by Julia Glass. "Three Junes" is three different yet interconnected stories spanning three different Junes and are through the perspective of a different person with each story/June. Ashamedly, I have not yet finished reading the book but am about halfway through. I am conflicted about some characters, especially the mother in this book, I have to reserve any final judgement until I actually finish the book.

There are a lot of different food and dishes talked about in the book; among them are Dennis' creations which sounded amazing and I thought about doing a version of one of his dishes from the book. I ended up settling on one of my favorite dishes that I make from Melissa D'Arabian's Supermarket Healthy. This dish probably isn't an authentic Greek dish, but it has Greek flavors mixed into the pork and zucchini which I absolutely love. What really convinced me to make this dish to contribute for this month isn't any spectacular, but I was craving this meal and was an easy meal for me to prepare. I should note that I've been taking an all-day Saturday class which is ongoing for two months, which really only leaves me one day off during the week. I've been finding myself scrambling to get everything done in that one day that I need to so this recipe was perfect and I've been wanting to share this recipe for awhile now!

This meal is so easy to prepare and it takes less than half an hour to cook. Buy thin pork chops so that they cook through faster, then use the same pan to prepare the zucchini. What I usually do, which makes the zucchini appear a little darker in color, is pour the accumulated juices of the resting cooked pork chops into the pan with the zucchini for a little extra flavor. You can totally skip that part, but I find that it give the vegetables just a little extra flavor. Also, depending on the size of the pork chops, sometimes I double the ingredients for the rub. The chops that I tend to buy are very thin but very, very wide so I need to make a little bit more rub. So just use your judgement.

I'll say it again that this is one of my favorite meals, and I'm so excited to share this with you today! I really hope that you make it and enjoy it as much as we do! The recipe is down below.

Also, please check out the wonderful bloggers below who are participating in The Book Club Cook Book Cooking Crew and see what they have created this month. You can also follow this project on social media with the hashtag #thebookclubcookbookCC. We'll be posting all of our creations to our Pinterest board. Here's the team, in alphabetical order with links to their homepages.

This month Wendy at A Day in the Life on the Farm, this month's host, is giving away a copy of the book.* Enter to win a copy of the cookbook so you can join us in future months, if you wish!

One of our lucky readers - US and Canada only! - can enter to win a copy ofThe Book Club Cookbook, Revised Edition: Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's Favorite Books and Authors by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp, courtesy of Tarcher-Penguin. Giveaway runs from October 1st till October 31st at 4 o'clock PM, Pacific time. Please see terms and conditions in the rafflecopter widget below. Many thanks to Tarcher Books. You may find Tarcher: on the web, on Facebook, on Twitter, and on Pinterest.

a Rafflecopter giveaway*Disclosure: Wendy received a complimentary copy of The Book Club Cookbook, Revised Edition: Recipes and Food for Thought from Your Book Club's Favorite Books and Authors by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp as an opportunity to give a copy away. Opinions are our own. We received no further compensation for our posts.

To season and cook the pork chops: Stir together the oregano, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Set the pork chops on a cutting board and season both sides of each chop with the spice blend.

Heat a large skillet over high-heat for 1 minute. Add the canola oil, and once it shimmers, add the chops. Reduce the heat to medium-high and cook, without moving the chops, until they are nicely browned, 3-4 minutes. Flip the chops and cook on the other side until browned and the centers resist light pressure, 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

To cook the zucchini: Add the zucchini to the skillet with the salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until the zucchini softens, 3-4 minutes. (At this point, I'll also pour in any accumulated juices from the resting pork chops to give the zucchini a bit more flavor!) Stir in the herbs, the tomato, olive oil, lemon juice, and feta.